I am your typical housewife living in high maintenance suburbia. I have a handsome husband, 2 kids and a flock of pet chickens. I try and feed my family with $100 a month. With the help of coupons, gardening and bartering I am able to squeeze the most out of our grocery budget and still manage to have a little fun along the way.

TRUST ME…. It Will Fit!

2 weeks ago the HH and I were out and about and in the general area of a particular thrift store and so I asked him to stop so I could pop inside and see if there was anything good. And to my surprise, he joined me {but probably only because it was like 15 degrees outside and he didn’t want to sit in the car and wait for me}.

My husband has this theory about EVERYTHING that has been donated to a thrift store. And it goes like this: Somebody died in it. That sweater you see on the rack? Somebody died in it. That couch, somebody died in it. That bowl, somebody died while eating their cereal, DON’T BUY IT. That chair? You know, somebody died in it.

So basically, he doesn’t care what it is, if I drag something home from a thrift store…. I pretty much know he’s not going to like it and refer to it from that point on as … the dead person’s chair, or whatever.

Yada yada yada. So, like I was starting to say, about 2 weeks ago we walk into a thrift store and BAM, I spy the PERFECT farmhouse style table for my rug hooking room. I had been on the hunt for a rectangle table with a smooth top {for drawing out patterns} and chunky {but not too chunky} farmhouse legs for the past year.

And, because I didn’t want another project to add to my ever growing list, I needed a table that complimented the room. I needed one that was in fairly good shape and did not need to be painted. Nicks and scratches were fine {as long as the top was still smooth}. And I didn’t want a white table.

So, when we walked into the thrift store and I spotted the perfect table {hey, it’s the same color of my house and chicken coop!} I knew it was THE ONE.

Mavis: There’s my table!!!!! And it’s only $25! Sweet! {and then I go into the part about it being the perfect table to the HH and blah blah blah}.

HH: It won’t fit in the car.

Mavis: What? What are you talking about? Of course it will fit. We’ll just unscrew the legs and put the seats down. It will fit.

HH: That table is ugly. Someone probably died on it. I’ll find you a different table. It won’t fit in the car.

Mavis: OH MY WORD.

And then basically I knew I wasn’t going home with that table. At least not with my husband in tow.

So we went home.

And then the next day it snowed a wee bit {10 inches}. And so I knew that even if the table was still there, if somebody hadn’t snatched it up, I wouldn’t be leaving the house with 10 inches of snow on the ground.

Two days later, The Girl and I went back to the thrift store to see if the table was still there. It wasn’t.

Two weeks rolled on by and then yesterday I was out and about running errands and decided since I was in the area, I’d pop by the thrift store to see if there was anything interesting. You know, like a TABLE for my craft room.

Comments

I love thrift stores! Last month, I found a Coach dog collar and leash still NEW in the box for $2.99 each. The tag on the back of the box was $49.99 or $59.99. My dogs aren’t into fancy purses or collars so I sold them on EBay

Always leave husband’s at home(especially if they don’t like thrifting!!)…they just don’t get it. Mine is this same way. I’ve been scoring lots of wall art lately. I got an oil painting of a red Barn and a fall country tree scene for $7.99 at Goodwill. Then I found another country scene photo (frame included as well) at the Goodwill outlet. Last I found a Charles Wysocki framed picture at a thrift store. I loved his puzzles when I was younger and it was in perfect shape.

My youngest daughter just got her prom dress for $20. We love thrift shopping but my hubby doesn’t care to unless he is looking for something specific, which isn’t often. My girls and I love to go together and typically get garbage bags full of great clothes for $50 or less. I also buy a lot of rubber stamps in thrift stores for next to nothing.

I too love thrift stores and rummaging, but I always chuckle about those who wouldn’t buy clothes at a rummage sale or thrift store….because someone else had worn them. Excuse me, don’t you own a washing machine. And what about the clothes from a big box store, how many people have tried those on before you purchase them.

That’s hilarious. My husband will help me dumpster dive if it’s a good item. We live in a college town, kids will use something for a year and toss it. We got a brand new set of iron lawn furniture (six chairs and a table), a coffee table, desk chair, desk, two other outdoor chairs, a new with tags sofa, lamps, a bunch of unused pine 2x12s, etc. Neighbors got a brand new mini chicken coop kit. We only have a goodwill here,
and it is very pricey and throws away pretty much all donations, so everything goes to the curb.

Score! I knew that was the right table even before I scrolled down to the end of the saga. It looks great and definitely functional in your work room. Btw, I have its green-legged twin, or cousin or something. It is indeed an excellent table for everything.

If it’s true that laughter is the best medicine, then you sure gave me a good dose today with your story of thrift store shopping with the HH!!!! Sounds like The Girl is a MUCH better shopping partner with you. Please let us know in a future post what HH’s reaction was when you actually brought the table home!

A good portion of the furniture in my house came from estate sales. Yes, someone may have died in the house or had to down-size, but, I felt I was preserving someone’s treasure. I enjoy looking and using the pieces everyday. Your table was perfect for your craft room!! I know the feeling you had when you found something you wanted and kept thinking about it when you got home and wanting to go back and get it hoping it would still be there as I have gone through those emotions more than once!

I haven’t been in a thrift store in at least 5 years. I use to love going to a particular thrift store back in the day and regardless of brand, kids clothes were less than $1.50. I can’t go anymore to any thrift stores because I have severe allergies and as soon as I walk in I’m done for. I stay out of a lot of stores nowadays and shop at crazy hours when nobody is there because every time there is a service animal or crazy cat lady or someone drenched in Axe or perfume my body reacts. I love looking at your thrift store, curb, and recycling finds and reading the stories behind them.

Your new table looks so spiffy in your rug hooking room!!!! What a great score! Just think how boring your blog would be if your husband wasn’t as………………..particular about used furniture.
In the olden days, didn’t the doctor perform emergency surgeries on the family kitchen table? I think that is true, so your husband is right, someone very well may have died on that table…..or at least had their appendix removed on it.

My grandmother (born in 1881) used her entire summer pay when she was 14 to buy a table at a farm auction. It went to the kitchen in my great-grandparents’ home. Someone did have a hernia operation on the table according to family lore. It is now in my sister’s dining room…it has 8 leaves and fits everyone for Thanksgiving.

Of course it fit! We ladies just KNOW when this will work. Like getting a full-size IKEA bookcase into my Versa sedan. It fit. Or getting my daughter’s IKEA futon with frame into our old Chevy Aveo–it fit. Men just don’t know these things! So happy for you.

Years ago with the same table you got, I converted what used to be my kitchen laundry closet into a food pantry. It was tricky getting the table in but it fit perfectly….my husband added a shelf to the legs and I found large basket bins for on the shelf and on the floor, then we put wall shelves above the table. I now have a huge useful storage space that I love. My husband doesnt enjoy the thrift store experience either, but he is smart enough to appreciate the value especially when I come home with some $40.00 book he likes for $2.00. MEN!!!!! I recently found a small birdcage, painted it white and planted ferns in it for the sunroom….I paid $3.00 for it and when I went to the nursery to buy the ferns, they had a similar rusty lookin cage for $47.00!! Score!!

I wonder how many people die on top of tables annually? Probably not very many. So funny, I laughed out loud.

My dad is the opposite of your husband. For him, everything he buys is “brand new”. Even if it is very clearly used, it’s “new”. Even if it is pretty nearly an antique, it’s “brand new” (never used!!!).

I just had to laugh at this! My husband is convinced stuff is “dirty” or “buggy”, but if it’s a tool, he’s aall in…he really doesn’t like garage sales, but if he sees tools/outdoor stuff he’s in. Husbands are weird! Thrift stores and garage sales are so exciting!

I use to help out on fire /water restorations. The people had a fire in their home and had a brand new in the box still unopened vacuum cleaner. No one wanted it, not even the house owners. I took it home, took it out of he box and out of its plastic covering, no smoke smell whatsoever. So I got a brand new vacuum cleaner for free.

A friend claims that everything at thrift stores was stolen and then the thief had a guilty conscience and donated it! Whatever.

Hubby and I love to thrift shop together. We have a $1000 coffee maker that we paid $20 for and we bought a player piano including nearly 100 rolls for $800 two years ago. The piano is valued at $8-9K. We are working on clearing our schedule so we can get put there tomorrow and treasure hunt!

Your rug hooking room makes my heart so happy! The light in there is divine! It looks like an amazing room to spend a few hours in!!!

I don’t take my hubby on my thrifting trips….the kids enjoy them, but he doesn’t. I mostly just wander now, cause we don’t “need” anything. I do buy kids books at thrift stores …cause my kids love to read, and then I also sell used books on homeschool sites for some extra $$ (along with the kids’ used curriculum). We were in one a couple weeks ago to see IF they had any jeans for my son (before I had to pay full price somewhere), and dd and I giggled to death cause the ONE PAIR of 29×30 jeans ds tried on ended up being skinny jeans….and my poor son was standing there, horrified! My dd said she hoped she would NEVER forget what he looked like wearing those skinny jeans! Bless his heart, mama went and spent full price on three pair of NON-skinny jeans for him after that!!!

This story made me smile. Years ago, at a flea market, I spotted the perfect chunky arts & crafts table to use as an island in my kitchen. It was painted a hideous turquoise but I knew it was a beauty underneath. And it was $40. No-my husband didn’t want a project ( I don’t mind at all-I love working on furniture) and he wasn’t sure he liked it. I said it will be gone in a hot minute…and of course it was sold right away. So-a month later, we returned to the same flea market and low and behold…there was the table, already stripped and looking lovely. And…marked down to $60.
SOLD. That was certainly worth $20 to not have to strip and refinish it. It has been my kitchen island in my 1915 craftsman for almost 20 years. Perfection. Gppd things come to those who wait.

This is SO funny, Mavis!!! I think it is universal. Husbands are hard wired to see problems where wives see solutions! Thought we donate plenty of decent stuff to thrift shops, my husband is always reluctant to acquire stuff by the same process. Go figure!!!

My other fav go-to for fab finds on the cheap is freecycle.org! Have you tried it?

Your table looks great. A bargain indeed! But being a bit concerned about germs I don’t think I could do clothes or shoes from a thrift store. I have an old iron bed from an antique store. I have had it since the early 80s. My son (Mr. HB) called it the “dead bed” from the first time he saw it. He never would sleep in it!

I spent $60 and got 6 shirts, a pair of jeans, 2 pants (one new with tags) for a hard to fit hubby. I felt like right place and time. My daughter got two sweaters, a corduroy blazer and a,couple shirts for $25. I don’t get to go often, but you can find good stuff that nobody died in.

Your craft room is to die for. It looks amazing.
Love the table and laughing so much – of course it fit. Thats the first thing my husband would have said – it won’t fit, without even trying!!! 😀
I have the same problem with driftwood… we hike and see driftwood (the big awkward kind) and I get a ‘no’ before I have even opened my mouth! 😛
(Can’t complain too much – we’ve collected quite a bit in the past already!)
Anyway, thanks for the craft room inspiration!!!

Mavis, I love your new table, and your entire craft room too !
You do such a good job arranging everything neatly. Everyday, I look forward to reading your blog !

Just because I am always interested in the economics of frugal living, and thrift store shopping compared to new ( which I never do anymore for furniture ) I would appreciate knowing what you payed for the nice table. May I ask how much it cost ? Around here such a table might go for $25.00 to $50.00 in a thrift store. One might have the good fortune to find one less expensive at an auction if furniture is not selling well that day, but it would probably take a long time to find a bargain like that, and waiting all day at an auction can be tiring, even if one is having some fun watching everything else be sold. A genuine antique harvest table, in an antique shop, well, that would be very expensive, several hundreds of dollars, and maybe even over a thousand. Your table is lovely, and I love the red legs, but from the good picture you showed us of the underside, I would say it is a fine reproduction, and so would not be priced as an antique, but it looks like a really solid, attractive, practical piece. I have an old, fairly small solid cherry table that I found at a flea market many years ago for about $ 80.00. It was already refinished, and for about 25 years it has held my computer screen and keyboard, sound speakers, plus notebooks, phone and some other paraphernalia I sometimes like to access when I am working away using my computer.
Like I say, I am just always interested in the cost, and the value. My cherry table is as nice as the day I bought it, and would probably sell easily for around $350.00 now. It is approximately 125 years old. I would guess that you got excellent value for your money.

So, would you mind telling us how old you think your table is, and how much it cost ? I hope this will not offend anyone.

We have the opposite problem. My husband loves to go thrifting and will normally find (and spend) more than I. He loves finding expensive shoes in good shape and living in a FL retirement zone – somebody probably did die in them! Absolutely LOVE the table. I had a white one like that years ago. I should have kept it!